Ripon Spa Baths is set to be sold to a commercial developer after a bid to retain the building for community use failed.

Harrogate Borough Council, which has owned the Edwardian building since the reorganisation of local government in 1974, has confirmed that it intends to sell the Park Street property to the unnamed commercial bidder.

Ripon City Council successfully applied for for the building to be listed as an asset of community value in September. This meant it had six months to raise the finance to purchase the building to keep it in commercial use. But time has now run out.

The city council also called this month for the ownership of the Grade II listed building, which was used as a swimming pool until it closed in November, to be transferred back to Ripon without charge when Harrogate Borough Council is abolished next year.

Ripon councillors argued that Spa Baths and other city assets, including the town hall, Hugh Ripley Hall, Market Square, Spa Gardens and Spa Park, should be handed back for free by Harrogate Borough Council as it had not paid a penny for them.

The building is recognised as a key heritage asset by Ripon Civic Society

But Harrogate Borough Council’s response to Ripon City Council’s request for the reversion of ownership, seen by the Stray Ferret, confirms the building will be sold to a developer.

Trevor Watson, Harrogate Borough Council’s director of economy and culture said in the email, which has been circulated to all city councillors:

“As you are aware we are selling Ripon Spa Baths because a brand new pool has been built in Ripon and this building is no longer needed.

“Our main objective through this disposal is to ensure that the building continues to be used in future and supports the sustainability of Ripon City Centre. To achieve this objective we have undertaken a comprehensive sales strategy which generated market interest in purchasing the building.

“The preferred bidder can demonstrate the experience, capacity and capability in bringing buildings back into use. In addition the proposed sale to the current preferred bidder will generate a capital receipt.

“The generation of capital receipts for assets that are no longer needed allows significant investment to be made in new assets, such as the new Ripon Pool.”

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“At its meeting on 13 October 2021, Harrogate cabinet have previously agreed to dispose of the building to the preferred bidder.

“As the building is listed as an Asset of Community Value a moratorium period was initiated and implemented where the council has not been able to dispose of the building, now that this period has expired we will execute this decision.

“We believe that this will deliver the best way of ensuring the future, sustainable use of this asset and enable Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire Council to continue to invest in the continuous improvement of Ripon City and its neighbourhoods.”

Ripon city councillors are determined that proceeds from the sale of Ripon Spa Baths must not go to the soon-to-be-defunct Harrogate Borough Council.

A ‘for sale’ sign remains in place at the baths, a listed building that was once the centrepiece of Ripon’s Edwardian spa quarter.

The baths permanently closed on November 7, four months before the delayed opening of Ripon’s new multi-million pound pool at Dallamires Lane.

The building was put on the market by Harrogate Borough Council after being deemed to be ‘surplus to requirements’.

Ripon councillors are adamant that money from the sale of Spa Baths should not go to Harrogate Borough Council.

Ripon City Council successfully applied for the building to be listed as an asset of community value — which means the community has six months to formulate a bid to buy it.

At the same time, Harrogate Borough Council, which will be abolished in 13 months, has selected an unnamed preferred bidder to take on the building.

The city council has continued to meet with the preferred developer to discuss the site’s future use.

It said the two parties have held ‘constructive discussions’ designed to maintain community use at the site as part of wider redevelopment proposals.

Independent Ripon City Council leader Andrew Williams received unanimous support from members at last week’s full council meeting for a proposal to appoint consultants, who will advise the council on progressing the ACV application.

He said:

“The developer has said that they are happy to work in partnership with us and, this being the case, there is no reason why Harrogate Borough Council, which is in its dying embers, should receive any money from sale of the building.

“Ripon did not receive a single penny from Harrogate when it took over Spa Baths and other city assets in 1974 so it’s reasonable to expect the borough council to return the properties at no cost to the city council.”

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• Six months to save Ripon’s Spa Baths for the community
• Ripon bids to take back city assets

The return of assets

Ripon, along with other parish and town councils that became part of the Harrogate district in 1974, have been seeking the transfer back of assets ranging from halls to market squares.

However, a notice of motion to this effect presented at February’s full Harrogate Borough Council meeting by Ripon independent councillor Pauline McHardy was defeated after a stormy debate by the Conservative-controlled authority.

At that meeting, Harrogate Borough Council leader Richard Cooper said the motion “simply isn’t legal’”.

He said that the borough council itself can not produce takeover plans for its own buildings to be run by local councils.

At the meeting, Cllr Cooper expressed doubts about the ability of town and parish councils to manage and operate assets, but added Harrogate Borough Council was: 

“Seeking to get better services for residents run from these assets is where we should be focusing.

“If parishes can do it better and put together a delivery plan – great.

“I wish them all well and good luck in managing those services from parish, city and town councils. But what I am seeking to do is make sure they get control of assets and run great services from them legally, quickly and sensibly.”

The leader of Ripon City Council has said it’s “appalling and disgusting” that a volunteer-run children’s swimming club won’t be able to use the city’s new £15m pool after Harrogate Borough Council tripled its fee.

The Stray Ferret reported yesterday that Ripon City Swimming Club has been offered space at the Jack Laugher Leisure Centre, but only if it stumped up £12,500 a year — almost three times what it was previously paying. This has effectively out-priced them.

The pool will be run by Brimhams Active, the arms-length leisure company set up by Harrogate Borough Council last year.

The club said it was ‘absolutely gutted” it won’t be able to afford to use the pool, which is due to open this month although no date has yet been set.

Ripon council leader, Cllr Andrew Williams, told the Stray Ferret that the move by Brimhams Active sent a negative message to young families in Ripon. He said;

“I couldn’t believe what I was reading in the Stray Ferret article.

“The idea they want to charge a commercial rate to local volunteers who are trying to provide something to local children. They should be given the pool free of charge. It’s disgusting and appalling.”

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Brimhams Active had wanted to amalgamate the club, which taught children to swim at the now-closed Spa Baths as far back as the 1930s, with its own swimming lessons. However, the club declined because it wanted to remain separate from the council.

Cllr Williams accused Brimhams of “exerting its commercial position unfairly”. He said he plans to raise the issue at the next Ripon City Council meeting in February.

“They didn’t come under the council’s umbrella with Spa Baths, so why now? It doesn’t wash at all. Brimhams wants to monopolise swimming lessons in the district.

“The situation has been badly handled by Brimhams and Harrogate Borough Council.”

The council’s response

A spokesperson for Brimhams Active said:

“Our Learn to Swim programme that is accredited by Swim England – the governing body for swimming – teaches swimmers how to be competent and confident in the water, and follows a recognised framework that provides a love for swimming and the skills and motivation required to lead a healthy and active lifestyle. It also provides reassurance to our customers that they will receive the highest level of coaching and safety standards.

“We have offered to work with Ripon City Swimming Club, enable them to fit into this district-wide development pathway and become a Swim England accredited recreational swimming club for children who have completed the fundamentals of our Learn to Swim programme.

“The club have also been offered the use of the pool at the same rate they were previously paying, should they wish to work with us and accept this offer.

“Should the club not wish to accept this offer, they are welcome to explore the hire of the pool at the commercial rate.”

It was opened by royalty in 1905 and has seen generations of spa-goers and swimmers spend countless happy hours there. But Ripon Spa Bath’s long history as a leisure venue has come to an end.

The Grade II listed building – which was the last of its kind to open in England – closed on Sunday.

Staff are being transferred to a new swimming pool set to open at Ripon Leisure Centre on 8 December.

If and for what use the baths will reopen to the public will depend on the outcome of a sale by Harrogate Borough Council, which recently announced it had found an unnamed bidder for the building.

However, the sale has not been a straightforward one so far with concerns being raised that the venue could lose its community use before Ripon City Council successfully applied for it to be nominated as an asset of community value.

This protected status means any sale has been put on hold for six months to allow time for community bids to come forward.

Councillor Andrew Williams, leader of Ripon City Council, said the authority was exploring a “number of options” for the baths which he shared his favourite memories of.

He said:

“My mum used to swim in the spa baths as a child in the 1940s and has happy memories of being able to swim all afternoon on a Saturday for 4 pence.

“She has less happy memories of jumping off the top diving board onto the head of one of her friends.

“I remember learning to swim at the spa baths in the 1970s and many local residents will I am sure have memories of the spa baths.

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“We must now ensure that happy memories can be created in a new era of swimming in Ripon at our new pool.

“Ripon City Council are continuing to explore and evaluate a number of options regarding the future use of the spa baths site and we remain committed to working to ensure that the site continues to provide facilities for local residents.

“We want to ensure that the listed front of the spa baths is returned to its former glory as part of any new use for the site.”

Listed status

Councillor Williams previously said he held positive talks with the unnamed bidder but added the city council wanted to “keep all of our options open” and had asked to be considered as a potential bidder itself.

Harrogate Borough Council has always insisted it has been open to any offers for the venue which was opened as a spa by Princess Henry of Battenberg in 1905.

It was more than 30 years later when the swimming pool was built to the rear of the building, which is known for its terracotta-clad frontage and gained listed status in 1980.

The new swimming pool and upgrades at Ripon Leisure Centre were due to be completed earlier this year but are now facing further delays after the discovery of an underground void revealed the need for further groundworks.

These works are likely to lead to a six-month closure of part of the venue, although the opening of the new swimming pool will not be affected.

Ripon City Council is to consider bidding to buy the city’s Spa Baths as part of the campaign to keep the building in community use.

Harrogate Borough Council plans to sell the Grade II listed building when Ripon’s new pool opens at the end of the year.

It has identified an unnamed preferred buyer but last month’s decision to list the 116-year-old building as an asset of community value has put any sale on hold to give the community chance to raise funds to launch a bid.

Ripon City Council is now taking the first steps towards pursuing that option after taking part in an initial meeting with the preferred bidder.

At Monday’s full city council meeting, leader Andrew Williams said:

“We had a constructive discussion with the bidder and will continue to work with them and look at any proposals they have for community uses as part of redevelopment of the site.

“However, to ensure that we keep our options open, following Harrogate Borough Council’s agreement to list the building as an asset of community value, we need to take the process to the next stage.”

Ripon City Council is to request to be treated as a potential bidder.

Councillors agreed to a motion put forward by Cllr Williams to “submit a written request to Harrogate Borough Council to request to be treated as a potential bidder under the provisions of the Localism Act”.

Councillor Stuart Martin, who seconded the motion, was among the councillors who attended the meeting with the preferred bidder. He said:

“We will continue to talk with the bidder, but must take every step to secure Ripon City Council’s position, without putting unnecessary obstacles to further discussions in the way.”

Housing fears

The future of the Edwardian building has been uncertain since owner Harrogate Borough Council put it on the market in February, saying it would be surplus to requirements when Ripon’s new multi-million swimming pool opens.

This sparked fears the baths could be sold for housing.

The campaign to retain it for community use, led by Ripon City Council and Ripon Civic Society, received a boost last month when the building was designated an asset of community value.

The baths were converted from a spa to a public swimming pool in 1936 and has the distinction of being the only English spa to be opened by a member of the royal family.

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Ripon City Council is seeking a ‘constructive partnership’ with Harrogate Borough Council as it bids to keep Spa Baths as a community facility.

City councillors voted unanimously last night to adopt a two-pronged approach in their attempts to maintain the Grade II listed building for public use.

Their bid to prevent the site being sold for private development received a major boost last week.

Harrogate Borough Council confirmed the city council’s application to have the building listed as an Asset of Community Value had been successful.

This gives the local community six months to put together a bid to buy the building.

Councillor Graham Swift, Harrogate Borough Council’s deputy leader and cabinet member for resources, enterprise and economic development, will be invited to meet with the city council at the earliest opportunity to discuss matters.

In tandem with this, consultants will be invited to submit expressions of interest for drawing up a business plan and development brief looking at options for the building, which is part of the city’s Spa Quarter.

The Ripon Civic Society plaque underlines Spa Bath’s historic importance.

At last night’s meeting, city council leader Andrew Williams, said:

“Harrogate Borough Council was attempting to plough on with its plan to sell Spa Baths without any proper consultation.

“However, we now need to draw a line under this and move forward in a constructive partnership with them to decide what’s best for Ripon and the future of this city, with its growing population.

“Cllr Swift has indicated his willingness to meet with us and we welcome this and hope the meeting can be arranged as soon as possible.”

The 116-year-old Edwardian spa, whose use was converted to a public swimming pool in 1936, was put up for sale for an undisclosed price by Harrogate Borough Council in February.

It was deemed ‘surplus to requirements’ with a new swimming pool scheduled to open at Camp Close, off Dallamires Lane in November.

At last night’s meeting, Councillor Pauline McHardy, said:

“It’s sensible for us to have two strings to our bow — six months can quickly pass by and we need to act now.”

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A number of potential community uses for the building have already been put forward by members of the public and Councillor Stephen Craggs, added:

“Future use of the building should take into consideration the needs of young people in the city.”

The battle to prevent Ripon Spa Baths being sold for housing received a major boost today when the historic building was listed as an Asset of Community Value.

Harrogate Borough Council put the historic baths on the market in February, leading to concerns it could be sold to a private developer and turned into housing.

Ripon City Council, Ripon Civic Society and Ripon Together called for any sale not to be rushed through and applied for the 116-year-old Grade II listed building, which has a distinctive terracotta-clad frontage, to be listed as an asset of community value.

Ripon city council leader Andrew Williams told the Stray Ferret today the application had been accepted.

It means the local community now has six months to put together a bid to buy the building, which Harrogate Borough Council has said will be ‘surplus to requirements‘ when the new Ripon Leisure Centre opens this year.

Cllr Williams said he was “highly delighted” by today’s news. He added:

“I hope it means we can now guarantee a future for the site that doesn’t involve it being turned into expensive apartments.

“People across the community have been calling for it not to be housing. There has been very broad support for it remaining as a community asset.

“We now need to explore all the options open to the local community with proper professional advice, to secure the long-term use of the spa baths for community use.”

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Next steps

Cllr Williams said it seemed unlikely the baths would remain as a swimming pool and what happened next remained unclear.

“I’ll be talking to the full council on Monday, looking to appoint professional advisors on what can be done with the building and to create a development brief for how it can be used by the community.

“A new use needs to be found, and I doubt it will still be a swimming pool. But it does provide an exciting opportunity to reinvent the site and city as a whole”.

The Stray Ferret has asked Harrogate Borough Council for comment but has yet to receive a response.

What does Asset of Community Value status mean?

According to Harrogate Borough Council’s website, a building or land can be listed as an asset of community value if:

• current primary use of the building/land or use of the building/land in the recent past furthers the social well-being or social interests (cultural, recreational, or sporting) of the local community
• it’s realistic to think that now or in the next five years there could continue to be primary use of the building/land which will further the social well-being or social interests of the local community, whether or not in the same way as before

Once an asset is listed, owners can’t dispose of it without:

• letting the local authority know that they intend to sell the asset or grant a lease of more than 25 years
• waiting until the end of a six-week “interim moratorium” period if the local authority doesn’t receive a request from a community interest group to be treated as a potential bidder
• waiting until the end of a six-month “full moratorium” period if the local authority does receive a request from a community interest group to be treated as a potential bidder

The owner doesn’t have to sell the asset to the community group.

History of plans to sell Ripon Spa Baths

• 24 February: Ripon Spa Baths up for sale amid housing fears
• 8 March: For sale sign on Ripon’s Spa Baths
• 9 March: Ripon City Council unanimously agrees urged action to prevent sale
• 5 May: Harrogate Borough Council confirms plans to sell, saying “Selling the baths for redevelopment, subject to planning permission and listed building consents, would allow this local asset to be given a new lease of life, retain its key features and remain as a city landmark.”

In the golden glow of Olympic glory, Jack Laugher told BBC television viewers that his favourite place in the world is “back home in Littlethorpe”.

For those who know him best, that came as no surprise.

The sporting role model has never forgotten his roots in the Ripon area and he continues to give back to the community where he was raised.

In the same week that he heard he had been selected for the GB’s Tokyo Olympic team, Jack agreed to sponsor the Roosters – Ripon’s newest netball team.

His mother Jackie, who will play in the a team for players aged 50 and above, told the Stray Ferret:

“While achieving so much in his sport, Jack has always been a loving son, supportive of what I’m doing.

“He takes as much interest in my membership of Ripon City Netball Club, as I do in his membership of the GB Olympic team.”

In addition to his Olympic gold and silver, Jack was a multiple medallist at the 2014 and 2018 Commonwealth Games. He is pictured here with Sylvia Grice.

A Transdev 36 double-decker bus is named in his honour and a bench installed by Littlethorpe Parish Council bears his name.

He was also one of six GB Olympic competitors supported by ALDI whose shoppers in Ripon and across the country could see his face on posters.

Jack’s history-making performance with diving partner Chris Mears meant the pair became Britain’s first Olympic diving gold medallists.

Jack in action at this year’s European Aquatics Championships, where he won silver. Picture: British Swimming

Jack’s mother Jackie and her best friend Helen Mackenzie were at the Maria Lenk Aquatics Centre in Rio to witness the winning springboard-propelled synchronised twists and turns, which denied the China team a clean sweep of the 2016 Olympic diving golds.

Back in the UK, a third woman shared in this triangle of triumph, watching on television in the lounge of her Littlethorpe home.

Sylvia Grice, who was made an MBE for teaching an estimated 250,000 children how to swim, saw her former water babe become an Olympic champion.

Jack, who started with his first splash at Ripon’s Spa Baths when he was three, now had gold around his neck.

Sylvia pointed out:

“Even at that age, he had the confidence and control to swim under water and that proved to be a good omen.”

A week later, Jack added silver in the men’s individual three-metre springboard event, becoming the first British diver to win multiple medals at an Olympic games.

Helen, who is Sylvia’s daughter and has followed in her mother’s slipstream as a swimming teacher, also teaches PE at Ripon Grammar School, where Jack’s academic and sporting prowess was developed.

She will also join the new Roosters netball team, and said:

“Jack is such a special person – a giver, not a taker.

“After donating a buddies bench to Ripon Cathedral School, he turned up at his old primary in his GB Olympic kit to present sports day prizes, pose with children and parents for photographs and sign autographs.”

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Ripon Spa Baths has reopened today (May 14) after more than a year of closures caused by the coronavirus outbreak.

It was forced to close in March 2020 when the first lockdown came into force and has stayed shut until today due to its staff supporting frontline council services stretched by the pandemic.

All swimming pools, leisure centres and gyms were allowed to reopen last month when other Harrogate Borough Council-run sites including the Hydro, Nidderdale Pool and Ripon Leisure Centre made a return.

However, Knaresborough Pool and Starbeck Baths are still shut, and it remains unclear when they will reopen.

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This is because maintenance works at Knaresborough Pool due to be carried out by specialist engineers from Spain have been halted by travel restrictions, the council previously said, although it added it was trying to find a UK-based firm to fix the problem.

Cllr Stanley Lumley, the council’s cabinet member for culture, tourism and sport, previously said it was hoped Starbeck Baths would reopen shortly after Ripon Spa Baths but a date has yet to be announced.

He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service:

“I’m delighted we have now been able to reopen Ripon Spa Baths and we are keen to get every other site open as soon as possible.

“With the challenge of staff being redeployed into frontline services, we are now getting our leisure services back up and running slowly but surely. We are running a strong recruitment campaign to fill the shortfall of staff and that is well on its way.

“We have also now ordered the equipment needed for the repairs at Knaresborough Pool and while reopening will be longer than we had hoped, we are keenly progressing.”

The return of Ripon Spa Baths will be welcome news for swimmers but the building’s future is shrouded in uncertainty.

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• Ripon Spa Baths up for sale amid housing fears
• Ripon councillors unite to fight sale of city’s Spa Baths

Harrogate council has put the 116-year-old baths up for sale despite protests that it could lose its community use if snapped up by a private developer.

Groups including Ripon City Council, Ripon Civic Society and Ripon Together have called for the sale to be suspended to allow more time for proposals to be brought forward, but their protests have been rejected.

A spokesperson for Harrogate council previously said:

“We have no plans to withdraw the sale of Ripon Spa Baths.

“The building will soon become surplus to our requirements and we do not have the resources to maintain it.

“Selling the baths for redevelopment, subject to planning permission and listed building consents, would allow this local asset to be given a new lease of life, retain its key features and remain as a city landmark.

“Ripon City Council, or another interested party, is welcome to submit a bid.”

The spokesperson also said the building is being sold because it will no longer be needed by the authority when the refurbishment of Ripon Leisure Centre is completed later this year.

The multi-million-pound upgrades were due to be completed earlier in 2021 but have been hit by construction and Covid delays.

The spokesperson added:

“Our strategy of disposing of assets no longer required means we have been able to invest more than £10 million in Ripon.

“The city’s new state-of-the-art, bigger, and better swimming pool and refurbished leisure centre will open at the end of this year.”

Harrogate Borough Council has rejected repeated calls for the sale of Ripon Spa Baths to be halted while work on the city’s regeneration masterplan is underway.

The council put the historic baths on the market in February in a move which sparked concerns that it could lose its community use if snapped up by a private developer.

Groups including Ripon City Council, Ripon Civic Society and Ripon Together have since made calls for the sale not to be rushed through.

But a Harrogate Borough Council spokesperson has now made its intentions clearer than ever. The spokesperson said:

“We have no plans to withdraw the sale of Ripon Spa Baths.

“The building will soon become surplus to our requirements and we do not have the resources to maintain it.

“Selling the baths for redevelopment, subject to planning permission and listed building consents, would allow this local asset to be given a new lease of life, retain its key features and remain as a city landmark.

“Ripon City Council, or another interested party, is welcome to submit a bid.”

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Alternative options

City council leader Andrew Williams told a meeting on Tuesday that it was “clearly inappropriate” for the 116-year-old baths to remain on the market while the Ripon Renewal Project is underway.

The Harrogate Borough Council-led project started in January with a consultancy firm being paid £85,000 to draw up a vision for the future of the city and help it win funding for major infrastructure, planning and community projects.

At Tuesday’s meeting, Cllr Williams also pledged to set up a community working group to think up future uses for the baths, which will reopen on May 14 following months of closures caused by the lockdown and staffing issues.

He said:

“This council needs to take a lead in bringing other groups together to look at alternatives in terms of what the Spa Baths site could potentially be used for.

“With this master-planning exercise going on at the moment, we shouldn’t be taking this building out of the equation.”

The Harrogate Borough Council spokesperson said the building was being sold because it will no longer be needed by the authority when the refurbishment of Ripon Leisure Centre is completed later this year.

The multi-million pound upgrades were due to be completed earlier in 2021 but there have been construction and covid delays.

The spokesperson added:

“Our strategy of disposing of assets no longer required means we have been able to invest more than £10m in Ripon.

“The city’s new state-of-the-art, bigger, and better swimming pool and refurbished leisure centre will open at the end of this year”.